Ecomoni
|associated = Morning Musume |members = Ishikawa Rika Michishige Sayumi }} Ecomoni (エコモニ。), was a Hello! Project subgroup formed in 2004. The purpose of the group was to promote environmental awareness. It was supposed to be a temporary unit, lasting from June 19, 2004 to June 20, 2004 but they had still made appearances together from time to time to promote various environmental festivals and events. Members *Ishikawa Rika (石川梨華), (Forest) *Michishige Sayumi (道重さゆみ), (Sea) Their costumes represent the spirits of the forest and the sea. '' Self-introduction * English translation: **"''I'm Rika Ishikawa. I'm Sayumi Michishige. Together we are Ecomoni." * Romaji: **"Ishikawa Rika desu. Michishige Sayumi desu. Ecomoni desu." * Japanese: **"石川梨華です。道重さゆみです。エコモ二です。" :While saying "Together we are Ecomoni", they put their opposing hands together to form a V. History 2004 Ecomoni was created for the Morning Musume "Acchii Chikyuu wo Samasunda." Bunkasai 2004, a two-day environmental festival that took place on the 19th and 20th of June. They were originally supposed to have disbanded after the festival during a ceremony to switch off the Tokyo Tower lights, however Koike Yuriko, Japan's Minister of the Environment, personally requested that they continue. At the festival they sang their song "Help!! ~Ecomoni no Acchi Chikyuu wo Samasunda!~" which was written and composed by Tsunku. The song only appeared on a DVD available for purchase at the Festival and on the compilation album Petit Best 5. A new version sung with Morning Musume appeared on Petit Best 6. In July and October of 2004 and in January of 2005, Ecomoni made a number of appearances on the TV show Oha Star. At the end of 2004, they appeared and recorded the theme tune with co-star Matsuura Aya in the fourth Hamtaro film: Hamtaro in a Fairy Tale as Ecohamzu. 2005 In 2005, Ecomoni and the whole Hello! Project became involved with the Japanese Ministry of the Environment's "Team Minus 6%" campaign to reduce Japan's greenhouse gas emissions to a level of 6% below the level of 1990 by 2012. They appeared with Minister Koike at the British Embassy in Japan on April 7 to promote the event. On November 16, the girls released a joint photobook called Angels, though it was not a Ecomoni product. 2006 On September 16 and 17th, Ecomoni, along with Morning Musume campaigned against global warming at Morning Musume "Acchii Chikyuu wo Samasunda." Bunkasai 2006 in Yokohama. 2007 In 2007, they appeared at Morning Musume "Acchii Chikyuu wo Samasunda." Bunkasai 2007 in Yokohama along with Morning Musume, v-u-den, Berryz Koubou and ℃-ute. In 2007, there was a rumor that there would be a 2nd generation with Takahashi Ai and Kusumi Koharu, replacing Ishikawa Rika and Michishige Sayumi. They would supposedly be picking up where they left off, promoting environmental awareness, but no actions have been made. Criticism Most critics claim that choosing Michishige Sayumi and Ishikawa Rika together in a duo, the supposedly vocally less talented Hello! Project members, is a bad idea when creating a music group, but defenders of the group counter by claiming that the group isn't only about the music, especially since Ecomoni hadn't released any music on their own. Discography Singles *2004-11-26 Tensai! LET'S GO Ayayamu (天才！LET'S GO あややム) (with Matsuura Aya, as Ayayamu with Ecohamzu) Compilations *2004.12.22 Petit Best 5 (プッチベスト5) (#16 Help!! ~Ecomoni no Acchi Chikyuu wo Samasunda!~) *2005.12.21 Petit Best 6 (プッチベスト6) (#16 Help!! ~Ecomoni no Acchi Chikyuu wo Samasunda! 2005~) *2014.01.01 Hello! Project no Zenkyoku kara Atsumechaimashita! Vol. 2 (ハロー!プロジェクトの全曲から集めちゃいました! Vol.2 吉田豪編) (#15 Eco no Waltz) Appearances TV * 2004-2005 Oha Suta Film * 2004 Hamtaro the movie: Hamtaro in a Fairy Tale Environment Awareness *2004 Morning Musume "Acchii Chikyuu wo Samasunda." Bunkasai 2004 *2005 "Team Minus 6%" campaign *2005 Morning Musume "Acchii Chikyuu wo Samasunda." Bunkasai 2005 in Yokohama *2006 Morning Musume "Acchii Chikyuu wo Samasunda." Bunkasai 2006 in Yokohama *2007 Morning Musume "Acchii Chikyuu wo Samasunda." Bunkasai 2007 in Yokohama External Links *Unit formation announcement (Japanese) *Acchii Chikyuu wo Samasunda. lyrics Category:Sub Groups Category:6th Generation Category:4th Generation Category:2004 Units Category:2007 Disbanded Category:Ecomoni Category:Morning Musume Category:Hamtaro